Why does eczema keep recurring?

Treating summer eczema with the wrong methods will not only be ineffective but will also make it worse. The following habits will exacerbate skin problems.

Scratch as hard as you can when it itches
"Use patting, not scratching," says Lin Kao-shih, an attending physician in the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine at Mackay Memorial Hospital. He explains that scratching breaks the skin's surface, slowing healing, while patting reduces itching without causing injury. If you're worried about scratching in your sleep, Li Shu-ching, an attending physician in the Department of Traditional Chinese Medicine at Changhua Christian Hospital, suggests wearing gloves to bed.

Staying up late and not getting enough sleep
"Staying up late can cause skin conditions to relapse," Li Shuqing mentioned, explaining that the body needs time to repair itself.sleepSufficient sleep is essential. Furthermore, staying up late, poor sleep, and a bad mood are believed in Traditional Chinese Medicine to affect the liver system. "Liver stagnation easily leads to itching," says Yang Su-ching, director of the acupuncture department at the Taipei City Hospital Linsen TCM Kunming Branch. She emphasizes the importance of getting enough sleep and maintaining a positive mood. She often goes hiking in forest trails and soaks in hot springs, feeling her pores open up and her stress and anxiety disappear. She suggests regularly visiting parks or forest trails to allow the phytoncides in nature to exchange for impurities in the body.

Eating too much ice and cold food
Many people believe that frequent redness, swelling, and itching are caused by "excessive internal heat" and desperately drink coconut water and herbal tea to reduce it, but this only makes things worse. "Drinking large amounts of these drinks over a long period can actually make..."Spleen and stomach function deteriorates"Yang Suqing explained that consuming too much cold food, such as ice cream and cold drinks, can burden the spleen and stomach system, preventing the elimination of dampness and hindering the improvement of skin problems. She recommends drinking warm water around 30℃, as moderate warmth helps to promote and eliminate dampness from the body."

Sweat not wiped dry
Sweat remaining on the skin for too long can also cause skin diseases to recur.
"It's good to sweat a little in the summer, but you should dry yourself off after sweating," Lin Gaoshi mentioned. He added that you should remember to dry off sweat before showering, changing clothes, and after exercising to avoid irritating your skin and making it feel itchier.

Sweating can expel dampness. Yang Suqing suggests that you should set aside some time each day to "sweat," whether it's running, playing ball, cycling, taking a bath, etc., so that you are covered in sweat and dampness will not remain in your body.
Take a shower with shower gel
Lin Gaoshi mentioned that shower gels have complex ingredients, and patients often see significant improvement in their skin problems after switching to soap. "No matter how natural it is, it may still contain chemical ingredients," Li Shuqing believes. She argues that overly strong cleansing power can damage the skin's resilience, and it's best to rinse with water, "or use soap every two or three days," she says. She recommends applying a simple lotion after showering to prevent the skin from becoming too dry.